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Death Comes to Pemberley [Hardcover]

P. D. James (Author)
2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (480 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 3 Nov 2011

The year is 1803, and Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for six years. There are now two handsome and healthy sons in the nursery, Elizabeth's beloved sister Jane and her husband Bingley live nearby and the orderly world of Pemberley seems unassailable. But all this is threatened when, on the eve of the annual autumn ball, the guests are preparing to retire for the night when a chaise appears, rocking down the path from Pemberley's wild woodland. As it pulls up, Lydia Wickham - Elizabeth's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered.

Inspired by a lifelong passion for the work of Jane Austen, PD James masterfully recreates the world of Pride and Prejudice, and combines it with the excitement and suspense of a brilliantly-crafted crime story. Death Comes to Pemberley is a distinguished work of fiction, from one of the best-loved, most- read writers of our time.

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 310 pages
  • Publisher: Faber and Faber; 1st edition (3 Nov 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0571283578
  • ISBN-13: 978-0571283576
  • Product Dimensions: 16.1 x 2.8 x 24 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (480 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 10,046 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

'As might be expected from a celebrated crime novelist, her follow-on to Pride and Prejudice introduces a detective story into Austen's world; but without any tremor of incongruity. An acute admirer of Austen's novels (which, her autobiography makes clear, she has been re-reading for more than 80 years), she keeps her sequel close to their ironic spiritedness, moral toughness and psychological finesse ... brimming with astute appreciation, inventiveness and narrative zest, Death Comes to Pemberley is an elegantly gauged homage to Austen and an exhilarating tribute to the inexhaustible vitality of James's imagination.' --Peter Kemp, Sunday Times

'P. D. James has the advantage in having both the skill and the intelligence to hold her own in Austen's company. Her charmingly conceived murder mystery unfolds like a big soft comfort blanket just in time for the nights drawing in: the nation's best-loved crime writer and best-known romance in a magic meld, with Downtony moments below stairs, spooky moonlit bits and some police procedural thrown in for good measure ... James takes Pride and Prejudice to places it never dreamed of, and does so with a charm that will beguile even the most demanding Janeite.' --Claire Harman, Evening Standard

The story is accomplished and witty, naturally, but to see James s sensibility at work on the character of Jane Austen is a wonderful treat. I find the merging of these two women of literature from such different ages to be totally intriguing. --Melvyn Bragg, New Statesman >>
A tribute to Jane Austen and a sheer delight. A book to banish Boxing Day blues. --Allan Massie, Spectator

Book Description

P. D. James masterfully recreates the world of Pride and Prejudice, and combines it with the excitement and suspense of a brilliantly-crafted crime story.
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Baffled 27 Jan 2012
By B. Hicks
Format:Hardcover
I was sadly disappointed by this book. It is difficult to imagine how a writer of P D James' standing came to make such an error of judgement. The cast of my favourite novel have been hard used. None of the characters rang true as being a continuation of the lives depicted by Jane Austen. No wit or sparkle from Elizabeth. No magnetism or power from Darcy. All two-dimensional and totally unconvincing. The passing introduction of characters from other Austen novels also seemed very amateurish and pointless to me. Sadly,I think many readers will find this book a very poor read.
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117 of 124 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Sad 6 Nov 2011
By F. M. Stockdale
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Should one's admiration and respect for a highly successful author lead one to turn a blind eye to a disaster (cf Agatha Christie's Postern Gate)? Surely not, since if these Amazon reviews have any purpose, it is surely to offer advice to would-be purchasers.
In this case my advice is clear: don't!
Re-read 'Cover Her Face' instead.
To write a thriller in the style of Jane Austen is about as useful an enterprise as telling the story of the Eurozone troubles in the style of Beatrix Potter. But knowing and enjoying PD James' earliest books, and sharing her love of Austen, I was very hopeful. As it happens, PD James abandons Austen-speak immediately after the Prologue and never recovers it, illustrating perhaps the imperishable brilliance of the original.
The result is a very dull and predictable story of detection with white soup and crinolines, hamstrung by the presence of so many characters above suspicion: the murderer therefore being signposted from early on.
I kept hoping for the appearance of some passing Lakeland poet, one Master Ebenezer Dalgliesh, to rattle the Pemberley shades. No such luck. It made me sad.
I can see from the Publishers' point of view that when a fine and profitable author sets off on an unexpected route, they may have little choice other than to follow and try to make it work. But in that case, why no proper copy-editing, which would have removed the several absurd repetitions and, for example, the strange situation on p81 when Darcy is placed in 2 separate parts of the house - at the same time?
The interpolation of characters from Emma and Persuasion was particularly ill-judged.
Let's hope we may escape 'The Massacre at Mansfield Park'.
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138 of 148 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars Too much to expect. 20 Jan 2012
By Valentine Gersbach
Format:Hardcover
I imagined "Death Comes to Pemberley" was going to be a cosy read for myself and Madame Gersbach to saunter through over Christmas. Here we have an "acclaimed" writer taking the characters from a wonderful Austen novel and playing about with them in a crime story. I didn't expect anything comparable to the real thing in terms of quality of prose or effortless wit but I did expect something light and amusing with an intriguing and entertaining plot.

Oh,how wrong can a poor boy be!

After an amusing and breezy prologue which introduced the main protagonists and filled in the interim between Austen's conclusion and James' commencement, the book hit the buffers.From the start,Darcy and Elizabeth were transformed into a cross between the Oxo Couple (Katy and Phillip?)and the Glums,Darcy having lost most of his haughty confidence and Elizabeth her feisty wit.The Pemberley they are given here had curiously been translated into an early nineteenth century version of "Downton Abbey" where servants held the stage alongside their crushingly boring employers in a way that I can't remember them doing in any of the Austen that I've read.The "crime" element is feeble where it isn't farcical.From time to time,the author also treats us to lectures on various aspects of the society of the time which suggest both a low opinion of the knowledge of her readers and a lack of skill in historical scene-setting.Somehow Austen managed to give us all we need to know about her world without getting out the history books and hitting us over the head with them.

In short,"Death at Pemberley" could most charitably be described as a damp squib.I wanted to like it because I admire P.D.... Read more ›
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44 of 47 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars A disappointing realisation of a good idea 4 Jan 2012
By Alun Williams VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover
I expect I am not alone in having bought this book because I was attracted by the idea of a murder mystery set in Pemberley. I'd fondly imagined that Elizabeth Darcy (née Bennett) would be a witty and perceptive detective, and that P. D. James would successfully channel Jane Austen's muse. I was to be disappointed on both counts. The plot is dull but complex, the writing is mostly dull (and no more than occasionally a pale shadow of Jane Austen's) , worst of all, Elizabeth herself is dull and passive. It's hard to escape the conclusion that this novel has been written to order, from a publisher's concept, to give an author whose powers are failing a more comfortable retirement. It is certainly very far from being the labour of love of a gifted writer, who knows Pride and Prejudice intimately, that one might have hoped for. Walk-on roles for characters from some of Jane Austen's other novels, while they may raise a smile, only serve to emphasise how poor the characterisation actually is. If one started with a hackneyed Victorian melodrama about a poor servant girl undone by a heartless aristocrat, and attempted to transplant it half a century back in time without worrying too much about period detail, changed some character names, and interpolated a few passages linking back to well-loved Jane Austen novels you would end up with something very close to this book. Don't buy it, or bother to read it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars Darcy and Elizabeth live on!
An enjoyable "who dun it" in the style of Jane Austen involving the same characters from "Pride and Prejudice" with even a mention of a couple from "Emma"! Read more
Published 19 hours ago by SueC
2.0 out of 5 stars Bit bleh
Nice prose but a very weak plot and the chacterisation of two of the best loved characters in fiction actually leaves you not caring in the slightest about them. Read more
Published 21 hours ago by Ria Hennessy
5.0 out of 5 stars Well, I really enjoyed it!
Having read so many critical reviews I can only say - Well, I really enjoyed it! I found it hard to put down. Read more
Published 2 days ago by Mungo
2.0 out of 5 stars Listen to the other reviewers
Listen to the other reviewers: this book is not worth your money.

In the first instance, PD James spends a baffling amount of time recapitulating the plot of Pride and... Read more
Published 2 days ago by Jolene Tan
1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
As a lover of both Jane Austen and P D James, I was looking forward to reading this ebook. I was, however sadly disappointed. Read more
Published 5 days ago by Granty
2.0 out of 5 stars Death Comes to Pemberley
I am about 30% into the book, and am struggling to persevere with reading it. A real disappointment, I'm afraid.
Published 5 days ago by Jetemb
2.0 out of 5 stars Slow
I loved pride and prejudice and was excited by the prospect of a sequel. The book however takes too long to get going and then is wrapped up really quickly. Read more
Published 6 days ago by Debbie
2.0 out of 5 stars Repetitive and not at all gripping
I bought this book as I know a British tv adaptation is being made and was curious about the story.

It is pitched 6 years after Lizzy and Darcy marry and their... Read more
Published 6 days ago by VickyC
1.0 out of 5 stars Truly Not Worth of Reading
There is truly nothing to compare this book to Pride and Prejudice and the characters that were lively, exaggerated and fun. Read more
Published 6 days ago by Matt London
5.0 out of 5 stars Can't be faulted
Amazing sequel, just what I wanted, after pride and prejudice. Great story line and believable as well. Well done P.D James
Published 6 days ago by josie
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